Fangrlz II: Deleted Scenes
by Destiny's Hand
Summary: Here be little snippets from Fangrlz II: Legends - some silly, some serious - that did not make it into the final cut.


**Disclaimer**: I still don't own Naruto or any of the people/places found in his home world.

**Author's Note**: I wanted to post something for Valentine's Day but had no fluff. Then I remembered this chapter that I had written a while back for the Deleted Scenes of Fangrlz II. At first, I had intended on holding off on posting it until later, since it might be considered a spoiler of sorts, but then I decided that the events here have already been kind of hinted and it doesn't spoil _too_ much. So here's a little bonus chapter for all of our fans out there. I'm told a few of you got to meet Kaitlyn in person this past December and actually asked for her autograph. That tickled and flattered me by proxy, so thank you! I hope you all have a Happy Valentine's Day! If I didn't have a test tomorrow, I would have done some quick fluff piece, but . . . as things stand, I don't really have the time. I hope you all enjoy this, though, despite how serious and possibly depressing it might be.

**WARNING**: Some possible spoilers ahead! You be the judge.

Chapter 11.5: Truth

? ? ? ? ?

_It's too late now to stop the process._

_This was your choice - you let it in._

_This double life you lead_

_Is eating you up from within._

-Apocalyptica _feat._ Lacy _of_ Flyleaf ("Broken Pieces")

-o-o-o-

I watch passively as Katie's eyes roll back and she slumps to the floor, making no move to catch her. Folding my hands behind my back, I study the young woman. The truth. She wants to know the truth. I frown behind my mask. For all she carries herself like an adult, that request was rather . . . childish. I step over to her limp form. The truth. I do believe I will grant that request. I will engrave into her mind every detail of the Truth.

If she survives, she will be all the stronger for it. If not . . .

I nudge Katie with my toe and she shifts, eyes cracking open. Trembling violently, she pushes herself into a seated position and looks up at me. Pain and betrayal run circles in her eyes. "I'm impressed," I drawl. "Most people would not be . . . coherent after that."

After several heartbeats, she croaks, "You used . . ."

"Yes."

I can _see_ her thoughts freeze as the realization of the position into which she has gotten herself finally dawns on her. Horror and fear soon follows. Her mouth moves wordlessly, and I almost expect her to start pleading for mercy, but instead, she breathes one word. "Why?"

I give a short, harsh laugh, and she flinches. Of course she would ask that. "You wanted the truth," I remind her.

"That wasn't-"

"What you were asking for?" I finish for her. I meet her gaze. "Too bad." The heat of my Sharingan blazes back to life and her eyes widen in alarm. No doubt she can see it through the eye hole in my mask. She tries to avert her gaze - close her eyes - but it is much too late for that. The Mangekyou sweeps her mind up again, and Katie collapses back to the floor.

I turn away, grab a chair, and fold into it. My eyes cannot seem to stray from Katie for too long as I puzzle over her. The first lesson is the hardest but the most important. I need to break that iron will of hers - that one-track mind. I need to destroy everything she _thinks_ she knows so that she can finally grasp the Truth I'm going to carve into her.

She clings to the hope that she can protect her so-called friends - something that can easily be used against her. She, in her current state, is weak and would be unable to do anything to help them should something happen - some part of her plan go awry - a fact that she is now witnessing over and over again. I know that when she comes to her senses, she will either be broken beyond repair or . . . encouraged anew to _do_ something about those dangers - something _I_ can certainly use.

In reality, whether or not she wants it, if Katie comes out of this with her mind intact, I will mold her into a tool for my own purposes. I have seen great potential in her. She will be my greatest weapon.

Her breathing is shaky and she blinks before slowly rolling and laboring to her hands and knees. I check the time. An hour has passed. That did not take as long as I expected. I remain silent, observing her progress. She does not try to get any further than that and I press my lips into a grim line.

"Do you understand? Have you begun to grasp the truth I offer you?"

"That . . ." she pants. "That is no truth."

I narrow my eyes. "And how would you know, hmm? You who are not from this world - you who grew up in relative peace - you who before we met was no stronger than a civilian - how can you presume to know the truth of my world?" She does not answer. Smart girl.

I rise to my feet and begin to slowly circle her, hands behind my back. "The ultimate truth of this world is death. You must realize this in order to accept the other truths."

"You're not dead," she points out softly.

I lift my chin. "Because I am strong. The truth is, _kitten_, that only the strong can survive in this world of blood and death, and they have to survive it alone. You must break your ties to all things that hold you down in order to become truly strong. This is truth."

Giving a harsh laugh, I continue to circle her. "Truth. You asked for truth. This is a world of_ shinobi_. We dwell in lies - live off of them. We are not creatures of truth. There _is_ no truth. There is no hope. There is only the next fight - the next hunt - the next kill - the next deceiving _lie_." I crouch, grab her chin, and push it up so that her face is mere inches from my mask. "Your friends make you weak. You hold back in order to protect them. You have to accept that you _cannot_ protect them . . . not as you are. They _will_ die, and you _cannot_ save them."

I can easily see the anger that flares in Katie's eyes, and I plunge her once more into the world of the Mangekyou. That anger will help to forge her into the tool I need her to be. Grunting slightly, I release her limp form and let it crumple to the ground. Soon she will see the truth as I see it. Soon she will come to accept it as I have. Soon she will cease to be a mere "high school student" and become a true kunoichi - _my_ kunoichi.

Soon, but not soon enough. I send her through two more rounds in the Mangekyou world for the message to sink in, and the final time, it takes much longer for Katie to return to consciousness. Almost a day has passed since we began this . . . exercise. This time, though, she makes no effort to move. She merely stares blankly at my feet, eyes somewhat out of focus. At first, I wonder if it was too much - if she was not strong enough to survive my forge – but then she slowly blinks and a grim smile spreads across my face. Good. I have not totally destroyed her mind. Now for the test.

"Sit up," I command her sharply. After a heartbeat, she shifts, pushes herself upright, and slides into a kneeling position - weight evenly balanced between her knees and the balls of her feet. She continues to stare forward with unseeing eyes, hands resting lightly on her legs. She is no longer shaking.

Good. I crouch before her, putting one finger beneath her chin. She tilts her head slightly upward in response, though her eyes continue to stare through me. "Tell me what you have learned."

When she speaks, her voice is devoid of emotion. Her resolve is utterly broken. "There is no truth in a world of lies."

My smirk widens. Success. I straighten. "Very good. Here, eat something." Taking from my desk the still-warm bowl of rice and chicken I had fetched only moments before, I held it down in front of her. She dutifully takes the bowl, eyes finally focusing on the food in front of her as she takes the chopsticks from their place across the lip. She hesitates, however, instead of immediately eating. She closes her eyes and inclines her head over the food, remaining that way for several heartbeats.

I watch her passively, remembering her explanation to Deidara for this behavior during our traveling. "_It's my people's version of Itadakimasu," _she had said. Thus, I do not complain. There is no shame in respecting the gods in such a way. Finally, drawing a deep breath, Katie lifts her head again and begins to eat at a steady - if fast - pace. There is no doubt that she is famished. She has not eaten since she arrived here yesterday night and it is night once more. She has missed a whole day, but I do not deem it necessary to inform her of such.

Taking the empty bowl from her, I touch two fingers to her forehead. "Sleep," I command, sending a pulse of chakra through that contact. Her eyelids droop and body relaxes. She slumps to one side, and I reach out to catch her around the waist. She needs rest if she is to handle the next step of my training, and the floor would not be proper for that.

I move her to the small bed and leave her to handle other things. There is so much to do when orchestrating a war, after all. I can waste no time watching a girl sleep. I can still plan, however, and plan I do - arranging the techniques I will engrain and a training regime that will carve her into the sharpest tool she can be, given what short time we have.

When Katie's chakra signature switches from sleeping to waking, I fetch Kisame - to whom I recently revealed myself - and bring him with me to her. An odd expression flickers across her face at the sight of the large swordsman looming behind me in the doorway, but she wisely says nothing. "It is time for your _real_ training to begin," I inform her, and with an expert sweep of my Mangekyou from her to Kisame, the two of them vanish into a special realm of not-space I had prepared for just this purpose - a place in which time moves considerably faster.

Deidara asks after Katie as I go about more preparations under the guise of 'Tobi'. I cheerfully answer that she's shadowing Kisame for the day, learning from the swordsman - which is not _totally_ a lie. She _is_ learning from him, after all. Deidara reluctantly accepts the answer and moves on, somewhat grateful to not have to hang around me for very long. I believe he has begun to suspect that there is more to me than meets the eye - that 'Tobi' is a mask. Hm. I suppose there is no harm in that anymore.

I retrieve Kisame and his student from the other dimension around supper time. They are both still in one piece, though Katie looks rather worn down. I notice with no small pleasure, though, that her movements are much more fluid and her gaze a bit more aware. She does not stumble so much when Kisame claps her on the back as he gives a positive report. All of these are good signs.

The girl turns rather green at the prospect of food, but she obediently munches on an apple while I allow her to recover somewhat from that training session. She does not say much, which pleases me greatly. Things are progressing rather nicely.

As soon as she finishes that apple, I throw her mind once more into the Mangekyou, training her myself in ninjutsu. It does not take long for me to realize that teaching her elements outside her lightning base is nearly impossible. Her chakra is so purely aligned with lightning that it refuses to be molded in any other way save for medical jutsu. It is frustrating at first, but I soon realize the possibilities in this find. Her training then shifts, and I pour all of my knowledge of lightning jutsu into her.

In a matter of hours, she undergoes months' worth of taijutsu and ninjutsu training within the world of the Mangekyou. With each passing session, I can see the edges of her mind beginning to fray - the strain that this form of training is putting on her psyche. She is in one piece, still, but much more of this would no doubt leave her mind broken beyond repair, no matter how strong her spirit may be.

I blink, looking down at the girl that is once more sprawled on the floor. My eyes lift to the clock. It is close to midnight - a good time to stop.

There is a knock at the door. "Come in!" I call in Tobi's bright voice. "Oh, hello, Deidara-sempai!"

He grunts. "I'm looking for - Katie!" The blonde artist hurries to the girl's side, and I frown behind my mask as he turns her onto her back and checks her pulse. "What's wrong with her? What did you do, yeah?" he demands vehemently, though he does not tear her eyes from Katie. He shakes her shoulders. "Katie? Koneko, are you alright? Wake up, ye-AH!"

With a blur of movement, suddenly Deidara is the one on his back with Katie crouching on top of him. Her knee jams into his gut, knocking the wind from him as one hand moves to his collar to shove him down and the other snatches a kunai from his leg pouch. Deidara's eyes widen in alarm as the metal touches the skin of his throat, poised to slit with just the flick of her wrist at any sign of a wrong move on his part. He stares up at her face, which is in the empty, hard mask of a shinobi that reminds me very much of Itachi. My frown turns to a smirk. She is ready.

"K-Koneko?" Deidara carefully gasps, doing his best to remain very still. She says nothing.

"That is no longer her name," I inform Deidara coolly, dropping the 'Tobi' façade. My next words are directed at her as much as Deidara. "She is no longer your Koneko. She is _my _Yaiba." My blade. My sword. My _weapon_. Release him." At my order, she shifts smoothly upright and to my side. Deidara sits slowly up, rubbing his neck and staring at her with an odd expression that I don't feel like dissecting at the moment, as I turn my gaze to her. "Very good. You are ready."


End file.
